Rapinoe calls for equality in remarks to House
United States women’s national team star Megan Rapinoe delivered opening remarks focused on change and equality for a special hearing by the House Committee on Oversight and Reform on Wednesday.
Committee chair Carolyn Maloney — a Democrat who has represented New York’s 12th congressional district since 2013 — organized the hearing to honor Equal Pay Day, a March 24 holiday focused on uplifting the issue of economic harms caused by gender inequalities.
Rapinoe was to be joined by teammate Midge Purce and other members of Team USA for an event hosted by President Joe Biden later in the afternoon.
Rapinoe opened the hearing by speaking about her own experience with the U.S. women’s national team, which has been embroiled in a lawsuit with the U.S. Soccer Federation for years over pay inequity between the men’s and women’s teams.
“What we’ve learned and what we continue to learn is that there is no level of status, accomplishments, or power that will protect you from the clutches of inequity,” Rapinoe said. “One cannot simply outperform inequality or be excellent enough to escape discrimination of any kind . ... We are told in this country that if you just work hard and continue to achieve, you will be rewarded — fairly. It’s the promise of the American dream. But that promise has not been for everyone.”
The committee noted the standing of the intersectional pay gap before the pandemic began — women average 82 cents for every dollar paid to white men while Black women earn just 63 cents per dollar and Latina women receive only 55 cents.
The pandemic exacerbated the issue. The committee reported women have experienced 55% of U.S. job losses — more than 5.4 million jobs in total — since the onset of the pandemic in February 2020.
The U.S. women’s national team’s lawsuit also has been impacted by the pandemic, which forced continual delays last year. Although the players settled part of the suit in December — when the federation agreed to provide equal flights, hotels, resources and venues to the men and women — the issue of pay remains at the heart of the disagreement between the two parties.
Rapinoe said the inequality in treatment for women extends to the highest level.
“The United States Women’s National team has won four World Cup championships and four Olympic gold medals on behalf of our country,” Rapinoe said. “We have filled stadiums, broken viewing records, and sold out jerseys, all popular metrics by which we are judged. Yet despite all of this, we are still paid less than men — for each trophy, of which there are many, each win, each tie, each time we play.”
Although the U.S. women’s national team continues to fight for their equality-driven lawsuit, the hearing was focused on the broader picture of gender-inclusive pay equity.
The hearing included reviews of economic reforms, such as the Paycheck Fairness Act, the Child Care for Working Families Act, the Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act.
Rapinoe closed her statement by advocating for change in the sports world and in the country as a whole.
“Instead of lobbying with the women’s team in our efforts for equal pay and equality in general, the U.S. Soccer Federation has continually lobbied against our efforts, and the efforts of millions of people marginalized by gender in the United States,” Rapinoe said. “And if that can happen to us, to me, with the brightest lights shining on us — it can, and it does, happen to every person who is marginalized by gender. And we don’t have to wait. We don’t have to continue to be patient. We can change that today. Right now. We just have to want to.”